Federal Goverment Seizes 150 Domain Names Dealing Counterfeit Goods
Authorities in the United States have seized 150 domain names which, according to allegations, deal in counterfeit and copyright goods.
“Operation In Our Sites” is the domain name seizing initiative by The Department of Justice (DOJ) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that has already seized 350 domain names in total since the start of this operation.
What makes these domain name seizures more shocking is that it falls directly on Cyber Monday, which is the largest shopping day online for the year. In Congress, they are currently debating whether to allow private rights holders to have the ability to block advertisement traffic and financing to websites they believe are violating their trademark and copyright rights.
“Through this operation we are aggressively targeting those who are selling counterfeit goods for their own personal gain while costing our economy much-needed revenue and jobs,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “Intellectual property crimes harm businesses and consumers, alike, threatening economic opportunity and financial stability, and today we have sent a clear message that the department will remain ever vigilant in protecting the public’s economic welfare and public safety through robust intellectual property enforcement.”
The reason why federal authorities can seize these domain names is because Verisign (runs .com and .net) and the Public Interest Registry (runs .org) are organizations based in the United States. Under current laws of civil forfeiture, the individual losing the property must prove that whatever was seized was not used to commit crimes.
The message found in .gif image file on the seized websites reads, “This domain name has been seized by ICE – Homeland Security Investigations, pursuant to a seizure warrant issued by a United States District Court under the authority of 18 U.S.C. 981 and 2323,” and then continues to list the penalties involved. These .gif image files found on the homepages of the seized domain names have gotten 77,000,000 pageviews.
Federal authorities have said that undercover agents were able to buy counterfeit handbags, sunglasses, shoes, movies, golf clubs, and sports jerseys, which lea to the domain name seizures.
Here is the full list of the 150 domain names that have been seized:
- 100jerseys.com
- 100jerseys.net
- 10nfl.com
- 17nfljerseys.com
- 17nflshop.com
- 2010-2011newlouisvuittonbags.com
- 2010footballjerseys.biz
- 2010footballjerseys.com
- 2010footballjerseys.net
- 2010nflshop.com
- autocd.com
- b2bjersey.com
- b2cjersey.com
- bclike.com
- bizjerseys.com
- bootsforwomenonsaleonline.com
- buyjerseysonline.org
- buyjerseysworld.com
- buysonshop.com
- c2cjersey.com
- c2cjerseys.com
- c2cjerseystore.com
- cheapestjerseysale.com
- cheapestjerseysworld.com cheapjerseysite.name
- cheapjerseysite.net
- cheapjerseysite.org
- cheapjerseysite.us
- cheap-louisvuitton-replica.com
- cheapmlbjersey.com
- cheapmlbjersey.net
- cheapnfljerseyshop.com
- cheapnflnhlsell.com
- cheapnflshop.com
- cheap-nflshop.com
- cheapnflshop.net
- cheap-nflshop.net
- cheapnflshop.org
- cheapnflshops.com
- cheapnhljersey.com
- cheap-nhljersey.com
- cheapnhljersey.net
- cheap-nhljersey.net
- crazyjersey.com
- dhljerseys1.com
- dhlnfl.com
- dhlnfl.net
- discountedjerseys.org
- discountedjerseysale.com
- discount-louisvuitton-handbag.com
- discount-uggboots-sale.com
- discount-uggboots-saleonline.com
- dvdsetonline.com
- dvdshopdvd.com
- edgefans.com
- eejerseys.com
- emsnfl.com
- finejerseys.com
- ggjersey.com
- ggjerseys.com
- golfsuno.com
- googlejersey.com
- googlenfljerseys.com
- groupsjerseys.com
- handbags-eluxuryin.com
- handbagslot.com
- jerseychannelone.com
- jerseyget.com
- jerseygreatdeal.com jerseynfljersey.com
- jerseyonsale.com
- jerseyorder.com
- jerseyorder.net
- jerseysbyjerseys.com
- jerseysbyjerseys.net
- jerseyschannel.com
- jerseysroom.com
- jerseysusa.com
- jerseysworld.org
- jerseywholesaler.com
- louisvuitton-bags-forcheap.com
- louisvuittonun.com
- luxurysum.com
- luxuryum.com
- luxuryun.com
- lvsalehandbags.com
- m1bjerseys.us
- mlbcardinalsshop.com
- mlbjerseys.us
- mlbjerseyswell.com
- myjerseyshop.com
- nfl01.com
- nflhere.com
- nfljerseysupply.org
- nfljerseyswhole.com
- nfljerseysworlds.com
- nflnhlsell.com
- nflnhlshopping.com
- nflsearched.com
- nhljerseyswell.com
- nhlmore.com
- nhlnfljersey.com
- nhlwell.com
- officialpumashop.com
- okupsnfl.com
- okupsnfl.org
- online-nflshop.com
- online-nflshop.net
- p90x-workout-program.org
- picknflshop.com
- projerseysale.com
- pumabig.com
- pumaoutlets.net
- pumashoesoutlet.net pumasportshs.com
- reebokjerseys.net
- reeboksite.com
- rejerseys.com
- rejerseys.net
- replicaoakleysale.com
- replicaoakleysale.org
- saintsjerseysmart.com
- shauntinsanitydvd.com
- shopsbag.com
- texansjerseystore.com
- tntjerseys.com
- tntnfl.net
- uggbootsclearanceoutletstores.com
- ujerseysale.com
- upsjers.com
- upsjerseys.com
- upsjerseys.org
- upsjerseys8.com
- upsnfl.com
- upsnfl.org
- upsnfljerseys.com
- upsnflshop.com
- usa-wholesalejerseys.com
- usnflclub.com
- uspsjer.com
- uspsnfl.com
- uspsnfl.org
- valorjersey.com
- valorjerseys.com
- verycheapjersey.com
- verycheapjerseys.com
- whitesoxjerseysmall.com
- wholesalecheapdvd.com
- wholesalejerseys-usa.com
- wholesalejerseys-usa.net
Two Illegal Tactics Bill Collectors Use to Terrify You Into Paying
Can they arrest you for not paying a bill? Bill collectors are now outsourced globally just like any other customer service. And since they are not in the United States, they are ignoring standard American bill collection laws, procedure, and protections.
What are your greatest fears about bill collectors? There are two illegal tactics and one terrifying collection tactic that no one wants to deal with. They are someone:
- Calling your relatives about your debt
- Calling your boss about your finances
- Threatening you with arrest if you don’t pay, and involving your relatives.
The last is the terrifying bill collection tactic some offshore collectors are now doing. One client who filed bankruptcy has been receiving repeated calls from a collector who will not identify himself, nor the company he is collecting for. He has repeatedly told her the sheriff will arrest her the same afternoon for not paying the bill. He also says that if she does not pay, her mother and sister will be subpoenaed to testify against her. He ignores requests to provide verification of the debt as required by American law. He has her name, address, date of birth, and even her social security number.
Although we do not know the creditor he is calling for, the amount of the debt corresponds closely to an online payday loan her husband took out before filing bankruptcy. That may be why he has her personal identification information.
There are two possibilities here. First, he is actually collecting for a real creditor. I highly doubt this possibility because saying they will arrest you for not paying a bill violates the Fair Debt Collection Practices Law, the bankruptcy automatic stay, and the bankruptcy discharge injunction. The second and most likely possibility is that the whole thing is a scam. I say this because the way they he is collecting would subject both him and the company he is working for to serious civil liability if he could be found out. Just a plain, simple crook out to steal from you.
This scammer is looking for the quick hit. The phone number he calls from does not correspond with any real address. I have communicated with a number of bankruptcy attorneys nationwide, and they all report their clients are getting the same kind of calls for bills that have been long discharged.
The bottom line is be very careful about the information you put out about yourself online, and if you get a collection call from someone saying he will arrest you for not paying a bill, especially for a bill you know you no longer owe, be smart, and ignore the caller. He is just trying to use a terrifying bill collection tactic to scam you out of your money.
[thanks to Bill Balena and Esparta via CC]
Mexican Drug Gangs Kidnapping Computer Hackers & Programmers
The fact that the Internet is not controlled or policed has brought on some interesting ways criminals have taken advantage of the situation online. The Mexican drug cartel has found a way to make money on the internet in addition to their wealth from dealing in illegal drugs. They are now kidnapping hackers and literally forcing them to hack into people’s individual accounts at large banks. The hackers are then told to keep the money and then deliver the money to specified drug dealers.
The hackers have been getting into online banking accounts like checking accounts, savings accounts, and more. These hacking attacks are taking place in the world’s biggest banks in the United States, Russia and Europe on a daily basis. It is believed that if the drug dealers find that there is a profit to be gained in the abuse of cyber criminals then we’ll be seeing these “hacker kidnappings” much more often.
Dmitry Bestuzhev, of the Russian antivirus company Kaspersky Lab, says, “In many cases cyber-crime is not punished at all, despite all the efforts.So, it’s another source of income for drug dealers. Kidnapped (hackers) have to keep the money stolen from online banking, from credit cards and then pass it to drug dealers. Despite all the security efforts, it’s quite difficult to ensure that the user is protected, because the security on the user’s side depends on the user. I strongly believe that if drug dealers see (money) in abusing kidnapped cyber-criminals, they will keep following the same line.”
Banks always tout their safety but is it really safe? Larger banks tend to use very sophisticated equipment that has tight security, perhaps safer than using a smaller bank. The smaller banks that can’t afford the most cutting edge security hardware and software generally use security equipment that is more cost effective.
In order to keep your online banking secure you should see to it that you have the very best in anti-virus software and anti-malware programs installed on your computer. In addition, now with the advent of mobile devices like smartphones and tablets you can do your online banking on the go. This may be convenient but communication through a mobile device can be picked up off of insecure wifi networks and your personal information can be at risk. Another reason not use a mobile device for your online banking is that the device is small and can easily be lost. If you do your online banking using this mobile device and your password is stored inside the device app, the finder now has all the information he or she needs to your identify and your bank account.
Your account can also be easily accessed when you make purchases online. There should be a good security system in place when you buy online – always make sure the website is displaying the lock symbol with an encryption notice – often the URL will start with https instead of http. If there is not a good security system in place by the website then your debit or credit card information is at risk.
